Thursday, November 27, 2014

Reviewed by Amanda Gillies.
(Read more of Amanda's reviews for Euro Crime here.)

This latest book by Lin Anderson is another in her Rhona MacLeod series and is first rate. Rhona is a highly skilled forensic expert and Anderson’s series brings her vividly to life. She is an intelligent, feisty female and it is a refreshing change to read a book that centres on a successful, professional woman who loves what she does.

In this latest instalment, Rhona is called upon to examine the body of a young man that has been found inside a Neolithic stone circle near Glasgow. The body is face down and its hands have been removed which, according to Rhona, suggests some kind of ritual killing – reinforced by a stone inside the mouth, with the number 5 on it. DI MacNab, newly promoted and keen to prove himself, is of the opinion that the victim is part of the gangland drug scene but, when another body is found in another stone circle, he is forced to change his mind.

PATHS OF THE DEAD sees Rhona working closely with several of the men in her life and it is interesting to observe the tensions between the men as they circle around her, vying for her attention and becoming a bit aggressive and jealous with each other. The way Rhona handles it all is superb. She keeps them all in their place and manages to continue to be professional, even when not all of the others are!

As the body count increases, so MacNab is forced into realising that this killer may have something to do with his own past. He puts his promotion, as well as his life, on the line as he goes in search of the man responsible for all this death. Rhona is left wondering what he is up to and, as she puts the pieces of the puzzle together, is forced to witness something that could change her relationship with MacNab for ever.

I love Lin Anderson’s series about Rhona MacLeod. It is always a delight to be asked to review another one of her books. PATHS OF THE DEAD is yet another fantastic tale. I am keener than ever to find out what happens next!

Monday, November 24, 2014

Jørn Lier Horst's THE HUNTING DOGS is the winner of the The Martin Beck Award 2014 given by the Swedish Crime Writers' Academy (Svenska Deckarakademin) for the best crime novel in translation. It is one of the most prestigious international crime-writing awards. The Jury says; An original, thrilling novel about a policeman's struggle on the edge between disaster and restoration of justice. THE HUNTING DOGS is published by Lind & Co in Sweden. They have also acquired rights for CLOSED FOR WINTER and THE CAVE MAN in the same series.

The Hunting Dogs is available in English, translated by Anne Bruce and published by Sandstone Press.

Sunday, November 23, 2014

I've updated the main files on the Euro Crime website today. Euro Crime includes both British and other European crime fiction writers (that have been published in English); non-British/European born crime writers who are strongly associated with British/European crime fiction (eg. Donna Leon), and crime writers in translation from outside of Europe.

1. The main by month/by author pages refer to when a book is published (in English) anywhere in the world however the 'by category ie historical, translated etc' is specific to the UK eg Emily Brightwell's series which was published in the US in the 1990s (and on) is only now being published in the UK and so her books are appearing in the 2014 Historical list.

2. When a book is released "early" in ebook I am taking the publication date as to be when the print edition comes out (this is the rule we use for determining Petrona Award eligibility).

As always, if you spot something wrong or missing, please do let me know.

New:The list of eligible titles for the International Dagger 2015 is visible here.

Saturday, November 22, 2014

Meet Miss Nancy, who has joined the Euro Crime stable of cats, making the total 4 again. Nancy has been with us since early September. She is just over a year old and has been in a rescue place from birth. She is very timid, even still, but has improved noticeably. She can be stroked but not picked up but we are working on it. Here she is settling into her new bed. Both armchairs now have cat beds in them and the settee often has two cats on it - leaving little room for humans - though there's always the floor...

Karen Sullivan, of the newly formed indie publisher Orenda Books, is delighted to announce the acquisition of WEL ex USA rights for Finnish crime writer Kati Hiekkapelto's The Defenceless. The novel will be translated by David Hackston and published in 2015.

Karen says, 'I'm ecstatic to have signed Kati for Orenda, and very much look forward to publishing the sequel to The Hummingbird, with fabulous protagonists Anna and Esko returning for a new series of crimes. Kati is a fresh, stunning new voice on the Nordic noir scene, and she's also an extraordinary woman. You can expect to see lots of her in the coming year, with a film in the pipeline and numerous festival appearances booked.'

Kati says, 'For a Finnish writer, being published in English has always been a bit of a pipe dream, as it's often difficult to find a publisher. Working with Orenda Books seems like double luck! With Karen's passion for and devotion to her writers, nothing seems impossible! I'm really happy to work with her.'

Monday, November 17, 2014

It's time to consider the titles eligible for the 2015 CWA International Dagger.

Here's the list so far of translated crime novels published between June 2014 and May 2015 ie the period of eligibility. There's 94* so far (cf 88 last year). NB. Only 1 book per author can be submitted for consideration.

For ease of purchase/library reservation here they are listed by UK month of publication:

In addition to the list I have set up a Good Reads widget on the right-hand side of the blog. This allows the covers to be visible plus you can add them to your wish-list on Good Reads. Should you wish to, you can subscribe to this list through RSS. I've added as many as I can find though I have used the original covers if the English one isn't on Good Reads yet.

In the list below I've also included the country of birth and gender of the author(s) plus the translator's name (where I can find it) and the publisher.

*this total includes titles published by Amazon Crossing, which I have flagged. I am not sure if these count as UK publications however I imagine people interested in this list will also be interested in these books. Also listed but not eligible are ebook only publications and short story collections. I have left them in for the same reason.

Sunday, November 16, 2014

Mark Lawson's Foreign Bodies returns tomorrow (17/11) at 13.45 on Radio 4, for series 3. This time, "Mark Lawson examines how mystery novels have reflected five different political systems".

The first episode is about Cuba and Communism:

To complement Radio 4's major dramatisations of The Havana Quartet by Cuba's leading crime writer, Leonardo Padura, Mark Lawson examines how mystery novels have reflected five different political systems in a new series of Foreign Bodies.

In today's programme Mark Lawson explores fictional investigations of Cuba after the Castro revolution with Leonardo Padura, author of The Havana Quartet, and Caroline Garcia-Aquilera, a Cuban-American writing from exile in Miami.

Wednesday, November 12, 2014

In case you missed this on Twitter, Orenda Books have unveiled the cover for Ragnar Jonasson's Snowblind. Snowblind is being translated by Quentin Bates (author of the Gunnhildur series) and will be published in June 2015. This will make it eligible for the 2016 Petrona Award (for publications in 2015) and eligible for the next CWA International Dagger (ie not the current one - list of eligibles coming soon I promise).

Friday, November 07, 2014

Reviewed by Michelle Peckham.
(Read more of Michelle's reviews for Euro Crime here.)

In what I'm sure will be a new series of stories from Chris Nickson, once again set in Leeds, the era is now the slightly more modern one of 1890, and the new hero of the story is Inspector Tom Harper. Tom is soon to be married to a strong female character called Annabelle; a woman who runs several businesses, including a pub, she makes a good foil to Tom.

As the story opens, Tom is pounding down Briggate, running after a criminal, but unfortunately loses him. He is then alerted to a case of a missing girl called Martha. Her mother Betty is in Armley Jail, and she should be still living with her father Col Parkinson. But she hasn’t been seen for a few days, and Col claims that Martha's been sent to his sister in Halifax. But is he telling the truth? Before Tom can start investigating further, all leave is cancelled due to the gas strike. Replacement workers are being brought in to make sure that the gas supply is able to continue. Of course this is an era when houses were lit by gas lamps, and industries depended on the supply of gas. As such the threat of an interruption to gas supply would have a big effect on the local economy, and the police are needed to keep order. But then Col is found dead, and it looks like suicide. Except that a few things look suspicious, and Col was seen with a couple of shady looking characters just before he was found dead. And Betty tells the police that he doesn’t have a sister in Halifax.

Tom is tasked with finding Martha, and Col's killers, and then the perpetrators of yet another murder that happens in the melee of the replacement workers, strikers and policemen. Gradually the two plot lines throw up some connections, and Tom is able to make some progress with his investigation, with a few twists and turns along the way.

The feel of the book is somewhat similar to Nickson's earlier books, with the back story of Tom and his relationship with his wife to be, and his professional relationship with his juniors, and with his senior commanding officer. And there is a bit of necessary negotiating to do with the leader of the local union, to help the plot along. It's interesting to see a more modern updated Leeds, with the little bits of local history thrown in. If you liked the original series of Chris Nickson books, you’ll like this one, even perhaps a little more.

Thursday, November 06, 2014

Newly launched independent Orenda Books has signed three books from a Norwegian crime writer.

Karen Sullivan, the former managing editor at Arcadia Books, signed world English rights for three titles by Gunnar Staalesen, We Shall Inherit the Wind, No One is Safe in Danger, and Where Roses Never Die [] the books will be translated by Don Bartlett, who has previously translated works by Jo Nesbo.

Staalsen was previously published in the UK by Arcadia.

Sullivan said: "This is a landmark signing for Orenda, and I’m absolutely thrilled to have the opportunity to publish Gunnar Staalesen, who is not only one of the finest international crime writers around, but undeniably a father of Nordic noir. Author of over 25 crime thrillers featuring Bergen PI Varg Veum, the time is ripe for Gunnar to achieve the worldwide recognition he deserves."

We Shall Inherit the Wind will be published in June 2015, with the other titles following in 2016 and 2017. Staalesen will make festival appearances to promote the titles.

The latest monthly challenge over at Past Offences is to read a book in November, published in 1946. Here are a few classic crime titles to choose from, first published in English in 1946, pulled from my database: